Naked man hanging in a tree: many facts but no story

New Albany, MS– Following are the known facts as observed and reported by law enforcement and rescue personnel regarding an incident Tuesday afternoon, February 21, near Blue Springs:

Emergency rescue personnel and equipment were dispatched from New Albany to a wooded area near Blue Springs, Tuesday at 2:36 pm.

A New Albany Fire Department (NAFD) rescue unit arrived to find a naked man hanging upside down in a dead cedar tree, about 14-20 feet off the ground. The trunk of the dead cedar was estimated as 8 – 9 inches diameter. Union County deputies arrived a few minutes after the NAFD crew.

The man hanging in the tree was Anthony Shane Treadaway, age 38. He was entangled in a plastic-coated steel cable, about 3/16 to 1/4th of an inch in diameter, with a snap at both ends. The cable was of a type sometimes used to tie up dogs.

Treadaway was also hanging from his pants, which had been stripped from his body, making him naked from the waist down (or would it be “waist up?”) to his lower leg.

Officials believe Treadaway had thus been hanging upside down for four hours or longer.

Anthony Shane Treadaway, from previous booking photo. No charges have been filed in this incident.

A woman, Laura Pannell, believed to have some kind of relationship to Treadaway was at the scene, but fled further into the woods.

The tree bearing Treadaway was 150 to 200 yards from the nearest road, and rescue workers had to carry in the various tools they used. They rigged a ladder and secured Treadaway’s body with ropes, so he could be lowered safely to the ground. Rescuers used a chain saw to trim away some tree limbs and cut the small diameter cable with a pair of hand pliers. They cut away his pants from his lower leg.

After about 30 minutes Treadaway was lowered to the ground. The extent of his injuries is not known but he had multiple abrasions and other possible injuries. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital in Tupelo. His condition today is not known.

The land owner told sheriff’s deputies he did not know Treadaway and had no idea why he was on his land.

Both Anthony Shane Tread and Laura Pannell have had “prior experience” with Union County law enforcement. A sheriff’s deputy told NAnewsweb.com he believed both were “highly intoxicated.”

After Treadaway was in an ambulance and on his way to the hospital, Laura Pannell returned to the cedar tree and gathered up his clothing and shoes.

Those are the verifiable facts, but neither we nor the rescue and law enforcement officers have much of an idea what the real story is.

We are, however, pretty sure there’s an interesting story hanging somewhere within the known and unknown facts of this incident.